Will broody hens adopt chicks?

[CESpeed]

I really want to have a couple of mommas because I want a continual meat supply as well as eggs. If I purchase a full grown hen and introduce her to some chicks that I buy from hatchery, will she raise them? I realize there are no guarantees and I should have a brooderr ready just in case, but is there a good chance a hen will take to the babies?

If it helps I'm planning on a flock of Australorps. If a hen will take them how many should I adopt to her?

Thank you for your input!

 

[gryeyes]

Simple answer: BROODY hens may adopt chicks, mature hens who have not gone broody will not, nor will they adopt chicks when not broody.

The mothering instinct starts with broodiness.

 

[debid]

You can't just throw a hen and some chicks together and expect her to mother them. If she were broody (which is a behavior of sitting on eggs to hatch them), then you could try chick adoption. But not all hens go broody, not even if they're a breed that's considered prone to broodiness. If you want to encourage it, you can try things like offering a darkened nest area full of eggs (it doesn't matter if they're real or not). If you can get a hen from someone who is unhappy with her because she goes broody too often, then you've got a decent shot at her going broody once she's settled into her new home.

 

[chicks are me]

sometimes, but if you have any chance of a broody hen to raise chicks that were hatched either not from her or from a hatchery you should know how many she can raise ( some breeds will only raise 6 where other breeds will raise up to 10 chicks ) and put the chicks under her at night.